'Awesome Mix' of 1970s hits holds top spot on Billboard chart

By Piya Sinha-Roy, Reuters

The "Awesome Mix" of retro 1970s songs featured in hit superhero film "Guardians of the Galaxy" topped the weekly US Billboard 200 album chart for a second consecutive week on Wednesday.

"Awesome Mix Vol. 1," which includes classic hits such as Blue Swede's "Hooked on a Feeling," featured heavily throughout the "Guardians" film as rogue hero Peter Quill's own soundtrack. It sold 93,000 copies last week according to figures from Nielsen SoundScan, keeping its hold on the top spot of the chart.

Retaining its position at No. 2 for a second week is the 51st installment of the "Now That's What I Call Music!" compilation album franchise featuring current pop hits, which sold 52,000 copies in its second week.

Rounding out the top 3 is the soundtrack to Walt Disney Co's hit animated film "Frozen," which climbed five spots in its 38th week on the chart, with 43,000 copies sold last week due to a bump in sales from reduced pricing on iTunes, Billboard said.

New entries in the top ten of this week's album chart include rock band The Gaslight Anthem's "Get Hurt" at No. 4, while newcomer YouTube sensation Troye Sivan's five-song extended play record "TRXYE" debuted at No. 5.

For the week ending Aug. 17, total album sales clocked in at 4.1 million units, down 19 percent from the comparable week in 2013, while year-to-date album sales stand at 150.5 million, down 15 percent from the same point last year, Billboard said.